Stoked to see a forum on Bradley smokers! I found it trying to trouble shoot why my smoker heating element in my Digital smoker (4 rack) suddenly stopped working. Oven works fine. I have only had the smoker since last May (8 months) and has less than 15 uses. Worked fine just a few days ago, then no 'smoke'. Briskettes move like they should but drop unused. Unplugged everything, re-plugged in - same result. Have brined salmon in limbo. Any suggestions? Thanks! Brandi aka Brandells
Welcome to the forum, you may have a loose connection in the smoke generator. They are pretty easy to take apart and it won't void the warranty
Thanks Dave01!
I will give it a try. I also will check out the rest of the forum. Looks like GREAT info!
Welcome to the forum from Nebraska.
Welcome to the forum from Oregon, this place is a wealth of information.
Hi Brandells;
Welcome to the forum.
If everything functioned prior to this, and your generator has power; there could be a couple of things causing this issue. First check the wiring at the ends of the element, to ensure they are not loose. If you have a multi-meter, you can test the element to see if it is still working. Detach the wiring from one end of the element, and use the meter to test the ohms. You should get a reading of 27 - 32 ohms. If not your element needs to be replaced. Also there is an inline fuse located in the back of the cabinet. You can only get to it by taking off the back cover of the cabinet. With you multi-meter, check the continuity by placing your probes, one on each end on the fuse.
Other helpful tips:
Bradley FAQ's (http://www.susanminor.org/forums/showthread.php?481-Bradley-Smoker-FAQ-s&p=748#post748)
also check to be sure all cabling is seated properly,,, sometimes the vibrate loose.
Welcome aboard
Thanks for the welcome and all the suggestions! Fortunately my neighbor had a smoker I could borrow since mine is still not 'smoking' so salmon not a loss. Boy, the Bradley smokers do spoil a person and miss mine already! I did open up the generator last night to check wiring and clean out (which was pretty darn clean since I haven't used it much!). All wiring seemed to be secure, nothing amiss. Looked at fuse and it was fine BUT didn't put an ohm meter on it. Will do tonight. In the meantime, I will investigate how to take advantage of warranty in the FAQs. For whatever reason, the main Bradley site doesn't even have a 'contact us'.
The fuse I was referring to is the inline fuse, that can only be accessed by taking the back of the cabinet off. That fuse is difficult to visually check whether it is good or bad, and is best check by performing a continuity test. Use the ohm test for the heating element.
Brandells, sounds to me like you've got a disconnected or broken puck burner. The puck feeder works, so you're getting power to the smoker generator. But the pucks aren't burning, so you're not getting power to the puck burner. I haven't paid that much attention to the fuse assembly in the smoker generator, but I'd be surprised if it only protected the puck burner and nothing else in the smoke generator. So, if the puck feeder works, I'm betting that the fuse is OK.
Thanks for the subsequent suggestions. I didn't get a chance to re-open up over weekend, hope to today or tomorrow.
Yes, the feeder works, just not burning. Odd thing is, I did two smokes within the 2 weeks prior to my 3rd smoke without issue. Smoker never moved, just got unplugged from the wall between smokes. Perplexing needless to say.
I'll report back.
Thanks again!!
Bradley Smoker warranty rocks!
In future, IF another issue arises, I will post in the appropriate section on the forum instead of the 'Introduction' section.
Thanks again everyone!
Brandi